What is your background?

As an Alabama native and avid athlete, I lived in the sun and even went on to play college soccer at Mississippi State University. Graduating with a Communications Degree with an emphasis in Publuc Relations & minor in Spanish, I’ve worked in advertising, non profits, to late night television in Hollywood. Now, I run my own firm Blue Eyed Entertainment specializing in Beauty, Entertainment & Events as well as management & consulting youth to adults. We also just opened a studio in downtown Los Angeles. I’m a 17x melanoma survivor and serve on the committee for The Skin Cancer Foundation.

When did you first become aware of the importance of sun safety?

Goodness — not until I was 26 and 8 months pregnant. That’s when I was diagnosed with melanoma on my upper back. Ever since then, I’ve been a skin cancer warrior & constantly preaching about skin cancer & the best no- toxic sunscreens. My 11 year-old daughter (also red head with freckles) doesn’t leave the house without sunscreen. Sunscreen and sun safety are a staple in our household. I’m a firm believer with protection and education we can change the statistics, but most importantly save lives.

How can we encourage our loved ones (and ourselves!) to be more proactive about our skin health?

1 in 5 Americans will be diagnosed with this disease in their lifetime: that’s 9,500 people a day. No matter your age, skin type, where you live, you should always protect your skin! As people say, our body is our temple – well our skin is our biggest organ but why do so many of us think it’ll never happen to us? With the right sunscreen, SPF clothing there really are no excuses to not protect yourself anymore especially with Amazon Prime.

How do you think people in the media can leverage their influence to help people be mindful of their health?

Other than May (Skin Cancer Awareness month),  influential people of the media help to save lives just by speaking out. This disease is not something to be embarrassed about, it’s a disease that in some ways can be prevented unlike other cancers. If more people would tell their story & realize sunscreen isn’t something to use just in the hot summer months. It should be part of your daily regime your entire life, just like a shower or exercise.

For more on Kit’s work, go here and also here